


Winds of Change

by Ariella1941



Series: In The Shadow of Empires [13]
Category: Star Wars, Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: Character Study, F/M, POV First Person, Plot, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-21
Updated: 2016-10-28
Packaged: 2018-08-23 19:03:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8339161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ariella1941/pseuds/Ariella1941
Summary: Chapter One: As the Alliance finds new allies in the form of Havoc Squad and a group of Zakuulan refugees. Major Aric Jorgan asks a favor, and a new opportunity to strike at the Eternal Throne opens up.Chapter Two: The Alliance mounts a risky operation on Zakuul that could change the war.Chapter Three: Aryelle faces Valkorion and Theron deals with the consequences of that confrontation.Chapter Four: Aryelle is rescued by some strange allies.Chapter Five: Aryelle returns to base, and so do Major Jorgan and Kaylio after the mission to the relay goes bad.Chapter Six: With some alone time, Theron tries find the words to express how he really feels for Aryelle.





	1. The Lost Ones

_Theron Shan_

“It’s a bigger victory for Pashna and his people than for us,” Major Jorgan told the Commander after the mission debrief at Havoc’s camp. And I had to agree with him. The exiles had taken a serious risk in answering Aryelle’s distress call, but they’d done it, saving the mission in the process.

Of course, I had personal reasons to be grateful too, but Jorgan and the rest didn’t need to know that. They’d find out soon enough anyway.

“Commander, Arcann is seeding his own defeat in these swamps, so I’d like your permission to embed Havoc with the rebels.”

“You want to train them into an army right under his nose? I like the irony,” she replied with a laugh then sobered, “and they deserve a chance to fight for themselves. Permission granted, Major. I’ll get with our logistics team when we get back to base and make sure we can send you the weapons and gear you need.”

Jorgan actually cracked a smile. “If we train them right, you won’t have to.”

Aryelle nodded, but I saw something flicker in her eyes. I knew her well enough to recognize she was picking up signals from Jorgen that I couldn’t read.

“There’s something else, Major, isn’t there?” she asked him, and the Cathar went still. “I don’t mean to pry, but I can’t help but sense the conflict in you. I’m almost certain it has nothing to do with the mission, but at the same time…”

Jorgen looked torn, and I started running through my mental files on the man wondering what had him so torn.

“You met my former CO, Commander? Colonel Alyce Traynor?”  

Aryelle nodded as I realized where this was going. Jorgan had protested Traynor being labeled KIA when she disappeared at the beginning of the war with the Eternal Empire. It’d almost cost him his command.

“Yes, though she was only Major Traynor at the time.” Aryelle replied, “I’d heard she’d been lost in action on the border of Wild Space.”

The Major nodded, “We were on some no name planet in the mid rim during the invasion, and she got separated from the rest of the squad. We never found a body, but the bean counters at Command thought it’d just be easier to label her KIA. File and forget.”

“But you think she’s still alive, Major?” Aryelle asked gently, but I knew it really wasn’t a question for her.

“I’d know if she were dead, ma’am,” he said to her, sounding stiff. “I just would.”

“Theron?” she turned to look at me, and I knew what she was asking and what Jorgen wasn’t. I just needed to come up with a perfectly logical reason to allocate resources to for this little hunt. Fortunately, I had a couple in mind.

“If she is still alive, she’d be an asset to the Alliance, Commander. One of the Republic’s top field commanders? Hell, if it weren’t for how Garza screwed up, Traynor would have had her first star by the time the invasion happened rather than just a posthumous promotion.” I said as I remembered reading the reports of Garza’s “Eclipse Squad”. The woman had done exactly what I’d been afraid the Empire would do if they got their hands on the Rakata tech the Revanites were using. When it came to light, it brought the whole of Spec-Force down, and Havoc nearly got lost in the shuffle. “So if we can find her we possibly get ourselves another experience field commander, and a morale boost from rescuing a war hero.”

“Do it. We need all the good commanding officers we can get,” she told me then turned back to the Major. “I promise we’ll do what we can to find her.”

“I wasn’t asking for special consideration, Commander,” Jorgan stated, looking between the two of us.

“It isn’t, especially since Theron’s right about Colonel Traynor’s military and morale value,” Aryelle told him. “But I’d also feel like a hypocrite if I didn’t have people looking for her, Major, because I had people who cared about me do the same.”

Jorgan looked away and muttered something about ‘damn Jedi’. Course, it could be that my hearing’s bad. He looked back at Aryelle and said formally, “Thank you, Commander.”

“Thank me when we find her, Major,” Aryelle replied with a smile. “Now let’s go brief your new troops.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

* * *

 

“I can’t believe we’re asking civilians to fight our battles,” Koth said during the debrief back at base the next day. I managed not to role my eyes and point out these were _their_ battles too.

“They’re going to do this with or without us, Koth,” Lana replied, allowing me to keep my mouth shut. I like Koth, I really do. More importantly I respect him. But between him and Senya baiting each other and moments like this… I don’t know what to do with the guy except maybe stick him aboard _Gravestone_ and keep him there.

“Lana’s right, Koth,” Aryelle said, “and Major Jorgen also has a point when he says that Arcann’s seeding his own defeat. There are going to be civilians—Zakuulan civilians—who are going to want to fight to defend their homes and loved ones. Teaching them how helps them and us.”

“A more rigorous analysis suggests that the cost/benefit is more strictly in their favor,” Scorpio said, and this time I did role my eyes.

“That’s because you lack this thing we organics like to call ‘empathy’,” I told her, unable to hold back on my own baiting.

“It’s in everyone’s favor to remove Arcann, Scorpio,” Aryelle put in before anyone could say anything else, “and honestly the Zakuulans _should_ get more out of that than we do. They’re the ones who’ve had to live directly under his thumb for the last five years.”

“Then I will attempt to compensate for your foolish… empathy.”

“Pushy droid you’ve got there,” Jorgan observed from his place at the table.

I sighed knowing what was coming, “You really don’t want to call her that.”

“Pushy?”

“Droid,” Scorpio said, moving to get right in Jorgen’s face, but before the droid could start on her usual rant, the Major brushed right past her.

“Whatever,” Jorgan said, “why don’t you go and rigorously analyze the data we’re pulling from the relay?” He looked over at Aryelle, “if there’s nothing more, I’ll catch the next transport back to Zakuul, Commander.”

“Of course, Major,” Aryelle replied with a slight smile, “good luck and good hunting.”

* * *

 

_Aryelle Thrace_

I usually don’t hold with memory wipes for droids, but I was seriously considering making an exception in Scorpio’s case. In a rather rigorous analysis of my own, I figured she was going to outlive her usefulness soon if she didn’t get over this cybernetic version of a self-esteem problem.

What prompted these un-Jedi like thoughts?

The fact that I just received a summons from that chrome menace just as I was about to sit down to my first hot meal in several days. Her ‘do not tarry’ made me want to remind her that droids were not immune to the Force and that I could easily rip her into metal bits. Tiny metal bits.

I’m tired and hungry. I have a right to feel un-Jedi like. I just can’t show it however. 

I stepped off the lift and couldn’t help but smile when I saw Theron. He has that effect on me, but I managed to keep it to a small, professional smile. He smiled back and said, “Commander, good, you’re here.”

“Astute observation, Agent Shan,” Scorpio commented from her place at his left. “It’s a wonder that the SIS could get by without your deductive reasoning.”

“You’re a _droid_ who’s gotten too big for her bolts,” Theron snapped at her, “how’s that for an astute observation?”

I wanted to cheer even as Lana looked like she was ready to explode. Seems my significant other and the Lady of Annoyance had been at each other for a while now.

“Look,” I said, “I was just about to eat my first real meal in days, so if we could get on with it, please?”

“Sorry, Commander,” Theron apologized, and I could feel how contrite he was. Not because he wasn’t right about Scorpio, but because she’d gotten him to lose his temper. “Scorpio, can you show the Commander what you found. _Please_?”

“A routine analysis of enemy transmissions obtained by Havoc squad, revealed a hidden signal within the mundane traffic. Encrypted transmission codenamed the Gemini Frequency, which are broadcast to every vessel in the Eternal Fleet.”

“Which means we now know how Arcann commands the Fleet,” Lana pointed out.

“It gets better,” Theron said as he punched up the map of the Spire we’d stolen a week before. “The transmissions originate from a hyperwave relay about ten kilometers below the Spire. We take that, we take the Eternal Fleet.”

“Ten kilometers is something of a hike, Theron, and I can’t imagine it’s unguarded.”

“It’s not, but with the information you lifted from Overwatch we have intel on every safeguard,” he said, and I could feel the anticipation in his emotions.

“Thus we can defeat them,” Lana added, “but we need to move quickly. This intelligence is turning stale as we speak.”

“All right. I want the three of you to put together an ops plan,” I told them, “I want to see it in…” I looked up at the war room’s main chronometer “…. About three hours.”

Lana and Theron acknowledged the order while Scorpio simply turned back to the war table, which irritated me. The droid’s disregard of the chain of command hadn’t caused any problems yet, but if she kept it up, it could cause problems, serious problems, in the future.

“Thank you. I’ll be back here after I eat and catch a quick nap, but it’s probably a good idea to call in our main operatives for this, especially Koth and Senya since they might have some ideas.”

“We’ll see to it, Commander, go eat,” Lana ordered me with a smile. I returned it before heading back to the lift.

As I went back to the mess hall and my interrupted meal I realized something, Valkorion had been quiet through the whole conversation. Suddenly, I had a bad feeling about this, but Lana and Theron had a point. We needed to move. I just hoped I made the right choice.

 

 


	2. Best Laid Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Alliance mounts a risky operation on Zakuul that could change the war.

_Theron Shan_

“This is a fool’s errand,” Senya said as she looked at the holographic model of the Spire that hung above the main table. I think this was maybe the fifth time she’d said something like this in the past standard hour.

“It’s our best shot at taking out Arcann’s major asset, Senya,” I told her patiently, “the intel is good, and we have operatives already in position.”

“One of those ‘operatives’ bombed my people,” the former Knight said angrily.

“In collusion with the security administrator for the Spire,” Lana pointed out.

“I agree with Senya. It doesn’t matter; she shouldn’t have another chance,” Koth said then shook his head. “Wait, did I just say I agreed with Senya?”

 “So nice to know I’m loved,” Kaylio said from a smaller holo. “So what’s the play? We going to hijack the signal or what?”

“Hijack? Are you insane?” Major Jorgan replied from his own com. “We don’t have the manpower to hold that position.” He turned to look at Aryelle. “Commander, Havoc was made for this mission. We have enough explosives to slag the entire relay.”

“And he calls me crazy,” Kaylio shot back as I felt a headache coming on. “We don’t need to hold the place; we just need the system protocols and the decryption key, and I can get them. I can give you the Fleet in less than 15 minutes. I’ll even gift wrap it for you.”

Aryelle shot me a look and I knew what she was asking.

“Both plans have merit, Commander,” I said, “Destroy the relay and the Fleet becomes floating scrap metal until they can rebuild it. Stealing the protocols and encryption, along with a full wipe of the system _is_ riskier, but control over the fleet might be worth it.”

Aryelle nodded absently, her face unreadable. This was turning into one of those times where I wished I could sense her emotions the way she sensed mine. Just knowing the how she was thinking would help.

“We’re going to have to take a risk somewhere,” she said as she studied the map. “Might as well be here.” Then she glanced up at the holos of Kaylio and Jorgen. “Kaylio, you have authorization to go in, but keep the collateral damage to a minimum. Major, I need you and Havoc to deliver on that claim of yours. Start hitting targets all across the Spire, and knock Arcann onto the defensive for a change.”

“Already gone,” Kaylio said even as Jorgan saluted and shut down his com.

Senya turned to Aryelle and said, “If Kaylio kills one civilian, I will kill her myself.”

“No you won’t,” the Commander returned sharply. “unless you want to spend the rest of your time here sitting in the brig, Knight Tirall. Discipline is ultimately my responsibility, not yours, and if Kaylio needs to be disciplined for her actions I’ll deal with it.” She stopped and looked the former Knight right in the eyes. “We’re about restoring some sort of order to the galaxy, and that starts with the Alliance itself.”

I watched Senya go wooden. “I understand, Commander,” she said and stormed out, cursing under her breath.

“Kaylio’s a live grenade, Commander,” Koth said after Senya left the room. “I can’t believe you’re trusting her. Do you really think she’s going to follow orders?”

Aryelle nodded. “I do, because we’re the best shot she has at taking Arcann down. She’ll play straight with us because of that.”

“She was ready to blow half the Spire, not just the droids.” Koth said to her.

“And I talked her down from it,” Aryelle replied. “If she were really determined, nothing I could have said would have stopped her.”

“The Commander’s right,” Lana added, “for all Kaylio’s anarchist ramblings, she’s not any sort of fanatic. She can be reasoned with, and sending her to the relay ensures her contact with civilians will be minimal.”

“I hope you’re right about that,” Koth finally said, “because we both know Senya has a very narrow view of justice, and she isn’t reasonable when it comes down to it.”

“Just let me deal with Senya, Koth,” Aryelle replied, “I just need to know you’re with us and not going to potentially follow Senya into vigilantism.”

“I’m with you, Commander, and I understand you’re trying to establish a formal chain of command here,” he said, “I’m not going to do anything to screw that up and keep Arcann from slipping through our fingers.”

I watched Aryelle let go of the breath she was holding. I doubt anyone else noticed, but I know her way to well by now to recognize the signs of tension.

I had my own reservations about Kaylio, but she had the skills the operation called for, and taking control of the Fleet would be a crippling blow to Arcann. Not to mention multiplying our own combat power by an insane amount.

It all made perfectly logical sense, but I found myself listening for the other shoe to drop.


	3. Into the Woods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aryelle faces Valkorion and Theron deals with the consequences of that confrontation.

_Aryelle Thrace_

I should have never taken Lana’s suggestion that I speak with Valkorion. I should have known better, especially since he’d been giving me the silent treatment lately. In fact, he’d started about the same time Theron first told me about the relay. Before that, Valkorion had been more than happy to offer his wisdom on current events.

I wonder how Senya would have handled it if she’d heard what her ex-husband had said about Kaylio.

There was a secluded clearing near the back of the base with a small pool fed by a waterfall. I’d intended to take Theron there at some point, but we couldn’t find the time for a real break. So now I was using it to meet with another man, but I doubt that this conversation was going to be fun.

“Valkorion?” I said as I entered the clearing. “We need to talk.”

“And what shall we talk about?” he asked me as he stepped out from among the trees. Alarms went up immediately at his tone of voice. “You took my power, and now you wish my secrets. Secrets you have not earned.”

“You make it sound like I stole your power by force, Valkorion, when we both know you offered it to me. In fact, you were adamant about it,” I told him. “You said I’d have to accept your help if we were to beat Arcann. I did, and I need your help again now. You saw the mission briefing, and you know what’s at stake.”

“I am not your servant, Aryelle Thrace, and you have trifled with my patience for the last time.”

A lightning storm almost as powerful as what I experienced in the throne room that horrible day five years ago hit me before I could prepare myself. And as the world went black I heard him say:

“You have forgotten what it is to face death alone. It is time to remind you.”

* * *

 

_Theron Shan_

I was studying the Spire's defenses again when it happened. Lana told me that Aryelle had gone to talk to Valkorion. I didn’t like the idea, but it made a certain amount of sense. She wasn’t close enough to get that ‘not quite’ sensation, but there was a very vague something that told me she was out there.

Then it disappeared. It didn’t snap, and I didn’t go numb. In fact, it was more like the bond had never existed at all.

“Lana!” was all I could manage as I tried to fight down the panic. Aryelle was still alive. She had to be.

I leaned against the table as Lana rushed over. “What is it?”

“The Commander. She’s… gone. Just gone.”

“Your Force bond?” Lana asked as those yellow eyes mirrored some of my own fear.

“Yeah,” I said even as I ran through some of the calming exercises I’d learned from Master Zho to try and cut through the panic. “One minute it’s there, and the next it’s like it never existed. There’s _nothing_.”

“Bonds don’t just disappear, especially ones like what you and the Commander share,” Lana said, “this makes no sense.”

“We should scrub the mission until we find out what happened to her,” I heard Koth put in.

I could barely think. I just couldn’t accept that I’d lost her again.

“No,” Lana told Koth, “we won’t get another opportunity like this, Koth. Just keep everyone on profile while I deal with Theron.”

She led me to an alcove just outside the logistics warehouse, but I just couldn’t sit down.

“Tell me everything, Theron,” Lana said, watching me pace.

“I already did. I get this hazy sense when she’s on planet but not close by, but now there’s nothing! It’s just gone!”

“But not empty, not…”

“Numb?” I replied. “No. I feel like I did before I met her. It’s just not there!”

“Muted, perhaps? To the point where you are unable to feel it?” She said, sounding more like an academic trying to solve a problem than a friend trying to be comforting.

 “I have no clue, Lana,” I managed.

“I’m sorry, Theron,” she replied, “I’m not very good at being comforting, but I have every reason to believe the bond is still there. Muted or blocked perhaps, but there.

“It’s Valkorion,” I said, “it has to be.”

“Agreed. I’ll send out search teams," she replied “but I need you to try and focus on the mission.”

“’Try’ is probably as much as I can do, Lana,” I told her.

“Then that will have to be good enough.”

 

* * *

 

 

_Aryelle Thrace_

I found myself laying on hard packed dirt. Shoving myself upright, I looked around and didn’t recognize a thing. Somehow Valkorion had moved me from the grotto to this new clearing. I pulled out my holo in an attempt to connect with the base, but something, or someone, was blocking the signal.

“Your friends cannot hear you, nor can they _sense_ you.”

Instinctively, I reached for my bond with Theron, but it was quiet, which was impossible.

“Why are you isolating me like this?!?”

“You have yet to evolve past the archaic strictures and empty platitudes of the Jedi, Aryelle. Perhaps you need a push…”

Valkorion’s voice faded out, but I could tell it came from a specific direction not my head. Speaking of my head… I tried to break through whatever Valkorion was doing to block the Force bond, but it was like trying to untie a knot with no beginning.

_It seems the only way through is forward._

“Yes,” Valkorion replied to the thought. “A path has been laid before you, yet you have continually refused to tread upon it. That will change.”

I started walking toward where I thought I heard his voice coming from. I was tempted to ask if he meant literal, metaphorical, or both, but I don’t think Valkorion was in the mood to enjoy my attempt at humor.

I also found I hated the fact that he was partially right. I had forgotten what it was like to be alone. I was used to having Theron’s presence in the back of my mind. Even knowing that the bond was still there, that Theron was still there, did little to ease the aching loneliness I felt. And the fear. I couldn’t leave him alone again. I refused to.

Intellectually, I knew that was selfish. That I had responsibilities to fulfill as Alliance Commander. But that didn’t matter. I was alone, afraid, and the Jedi Code offered cold comfort. The one thing I did know was that I couldn’t just linger. I picked up the pace and kept moving forward, hoping I could find a way home.

* * *

 

I entered yet another clearing to find Valkorion waiting for me. His back toward me, his hands folded behind him, he looked as if he were contemplating the night sky.

“The galaxy is now united under a single banner; it should have been yours,” he said as he turned to look at me. “Did you ever wonder why I allowed _you_ to kill me that day in the throne room?”

“You meant this to happen?” I asked, feeling horrified. “Why?”

But Valkorion continued as if I’d never said a word. “You have been given great gifts: The _Gravestone_ , a legion of allies, my immense power, and your own affinity with Force bonds. But you remain incomplete.”

Affinity with what? I had bonds with Theron, and Kira, but others? I would have known.

“Would you?” Valkorion asked me. “Do you truly believe the Rattataki simply listened to your words? No, you spoke to her through the Force, and she bent before your will.”

I shook my head, horrified. “No, that’s not true. It’s impossible.”

“Every life you’ve touched has become a part of you through the Force, and it has become an ocean in which you will drown if you are not prepared.”

“Master Orgus, Grand Master Satele… They would have told me!”

Valkorion snorted. “The Jedi Exile had a similar gift, and the Council attempted to murder her for it. Your precious Grand Master chose to keep it from you so you would never learn to truly use it. To deny you your birthright.”

_What?_

“You have continuously been told you are a nexus of Fate, and yet you follow along blindly like a good little Jedi,” he said derisively, “Until you embrace all that you are you will continue to be Destiny’s pawn, never its master.”

“What Scourge said, you mean? ‘The heart of a Sith?’”

“Sith, Jedi. They are just words. Words you should have outgrown long before this moment,” he replied, “You were born to defeat my son, to rule, to reshape this galaxy. If you do not, all that you’ve fought for will crumble, all whom you love will suffer for your cowardice. You’ve already had a taste of it,” he continued, “alone here in the night. Shall I give you more?”

I felt the Force ripple just before it flung me backwards into a stone outcropping. It pressed down on me, but I refused to allow Valkorion to win. He was wrong in one respect: I was no longer a good little Jedi. It was time to fight back.

My will met his as I rose, the pressure still incredible, but I refused to yield. I came to my feet, and it felt as if I were standing in a gale force wind.

“Give it your best shot! You have no idea what I’m capable of!” I shouted at him.

The pressure gave way, and I nearly swayed with relief, which wouldn’t have done much for my defiant stance.

“Neither do you,” Valkorion said, sounding almost regretful, “therein lies the problem, but I cannot protect you any longer. I have other matters to attend to, but I will leave you with a final token of my favor.”

As he began to fade a white edged violet mist flowed toward me, it crackled along my skin as it soaked into every pore. The pain dropped me to my hands and knees.

“Take your birthright from my son, and I promise to return.”

I pushed myself back up slowly. “Wait! You can exist outside my head? And other matters?”

“You will understand in time,” his voice was only a whisper that chilled me, “I do hope this is not the end to our journey, and one day, so will you.”

That was the last straw. I’d exhausted all my resources and collapsed into unconsciousness.

* * *

 

_Theron Shan_

The second sucker punch hit as Kaylio was more than halfway to the relay station. The bond was back, and it felt like pins and needles along my spine.

“She’s alive.” I burst out without realizing it.

Everyone turned to look at me even as the status updates on both Kaylio and Havoc continued to come in. I took a breath and swept the room with the best command look I could manage.

“Back to work,” I said, “ _now_ ”

Pretty amazing how fast most of the room turned back to their workstations.

But it was only most of the room. Lana made her way over to my station.

“Thank goodness,” she said quietly. “Are you all right, Theron? It came back all at once?”

“Yeah, it came back with a vengeance, but as to me being okay,” I said, “That’s not going to happen until we find her.”

“I understand, and while I wish we had more to go on, knowing Aryelle is alive gives me hope.”

Boy was that an understatement.

 

 


	4. Training Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aryelle is rescued by some strange allies.

_Aryelle Thrace_

I woke up somewhere I’d never been for the second time today. This whole thing was getting old fast. Then I felt the warmth in the back of my mind: Theron. Whatever Valkorion did to block the bond was gone. But so was my holocom.

At least I’d woken up in a bed, but it seemed my hosts didn’t want word of their existence (on a planet we thought uninhabited) getting around. In the normal course of things, I wouldn’t blame them much, but right now was not normal, and the combination of my worry and Theron’s was making me itchy. Not to mention I was supposed to be running a priority mission at the moment.

It was obvious that I was aboard a ship, so the first thing I did was head for the bridge. The astrogation systems had been wiped, and the communications system was code locked. If I had slicing equipment, and Theron’s talent I might have been able to get a message out.

The only other thing on the bridge of any interest was a hololocket. I activated it, hoping to get some answers as to who I was dealing with.

The holo was tiny, even compared to a communicator, but as I knelt next to the crate it sat on, I noticed a few things. First, the young man was wearing Republic armor that was about thirty years out of date. Second, the face was familiar to me, like I’d seen him before but not exactly. And finally, he reminded me a lot of Theron.

That thought caused the pieces to fall into place. This was Theron’s father, which meant…

I closed my eyes and focused. As I did so I was able to get a general sense of the direction Theron, and thus the base, were in, but I still have no idea how to get back there safely. Then I felt the others. Most were so vague it was easy to understand how I’d overlooked them. But there were two in particular that stood out at the moment. One was lighter than the other, and they had a different quality to them than what I had with Theron, or Kira or even Master Orgus. I couldn’t put it into words but there _was_ a difference.

Not different enough that I couldn’t identify who was on the other end.

I strode down the ramp, and came face to face with Satele Shan.

“Welcome to my home, Aryelle,” she said conversationally.

“Satele,” I replied, refusing to give her the honorific of Grand Master. I wasn’t some Padawan anymore, and I certainly wasn’t coming into this conversation as anything but an equal.

“You’ve been through quite an ordeal. Please sit, there’s food,” she said, gesturing to a small fire and a pot of stew.

“I appreciate the hospitality, Satele, but I have responsibilities and people depending on me. I need to get back to my base.”

“People will always depend on you, even when you aren’t there.”

I wanted to scream at her, but I hung on to my anger. “How long have you been here?” I asked instead, “And how long has Marr been with you?”

A sad look crossed Satele’s face. “So you know.”

“About the Force bonds?” I said through gritted teeth, “Yes, I know. Valkorion told me.”

“That is unfortunate,” Marr said, appearing out of the dusk, still clad in the same armor that he wore when alive. He turned to look at Satele. “You should have told her before this.”

“You _both_ knew?!?”

He snorted, “To stand in your presence and feel the bond form despite my best efforts? Yes, I knew, but I was not about to expose a weakness to an enemy.”

“You are a fulcrum, Aryelle,” she told me quietly, “you turn and the galaxy turns with you. I told you this long ago, but you were always wary of it, and of power. So, I worried how you might react to the knowledge that you created connections to people through the Force simply by being near them.”

“Valkorion told me I’ve used it to bend people to my will,” I told them, feeling a little sick at the confirmation, and what it might mean for… No, I wasn’t going to think about that now.

“I suppose, from a certain point of view, it could be seen like that,” Satele said, “but the truth is when you speak, those to whom you are bonded hear more than just words. They feel your conviction, your belief, even if they don’t realize it. It gives your words more weight than any other, but while you can inspire, and even change minds, but you cannot force such change.”

“So you’re not going to kill me like the Council tried to kill the Exile?”

“It was a choice we faced when we found you in that clearing,” Marr said, “we sensed the presence of our old enemy in your mind, guiding you. Such power in his hands…”

I looked at Satele. “Why didn’t you?”

“I didn’t do it to spare Theron’s feelings, if that’s what you’re asking,” Satele said.

“Liar,” I replied, “and don’t try to deny it. I can sense the conflict within you even now. You know what would have happened to him if I died, and that carried weight with you.”

She sighed, “Perhaps, but what truly stayed our hand was that we felt something we hadn’t in a long time.”

“And what might that be?” I asked, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Hope.”

The word slammed into me and I wanted to disbelieve it. I was angry that Satele had kept the truth from me. That she’d been here and never revealed herself to us. We needed her help yet she walked away from the fight. But as much as I wanted to, I couldn’t deny the feeling radiating from both her and _Marr._ They believed in me, as much as any member of the Alliance, or maybe more.

“This planet is perfectly balanced between Light and Dark, and as such it is a nexus in the Force. There is another world like it: Zakuul,” Marr said.

“The Knights of Zakuul are much like the Voss. Their strength in the Force comes from serving an ideal,” Satele added, “For the Mystics it is protecting Voss, and Orders of Zakuul, it is serving the Eternal Emperor. The more they honor his commandments, the greater their power.”

“But Senya doesn’t serve Arcann anymore, and she’s still pretty powerful,” I said, feeling uncomfortable as I wondered where they were leading.

“Senya Tirall serves Zakuul, as she believes it should be, which is much the same thing,” Satele replied.

“Okay, so they use the Force differently from Jedi or Sith, but I don’t understand what that has to do with me or with the war.”

“Because this is not a war that can be won through passion or righteousness,” Marr said, then sighed, “In life, I disdained the Jedi Code, but it was correct in one respect: there is only the Force, and it has both a will and a plan.”

I remembered a long-ago conversation with Orgun Dinn whether the Force was alive or not. At the time, he told me ‘alive’ was too strong a word, but now I had to wonder if it was simply another truth he thought I wasn’t ready to deal with.

“We were divided, just as the galaxy was divided, each side arrogantly sure in its truth,” Satele continued,” we could not see beyond our old enmities, and realize that Light and Dark cannot exist without the other.”

“We refused to bend, so we broke instead, just as I did the day I died,” Marr told me.

“That still doesn’t answer the question of what are you two doing here? Or what am _I_ doing here?”

“When the Republic signed its treaty with Zakuul, I gave myself to the Will of the Force. It led me here,” Satele said.

“And you, Marr?”

“My passion is, and has always been, to protect my people,” he replied and there was genuine sadness in him, “so when I failed, I sought a way to set things right once more, but there was only one other in the galaxy, at the time, who was my equal.” He looked over at Satele and his emotions shifted slightly. The sadness was still there, but there was fondness as well.

_They’re friends._

“We’ve been on this world for years, discussing, debating….”

“Arguing.”

Satele snorted and smiled slightly. I’d seen that smile before on another face, and it shook me a little.

“Fine, Marr, we were arguing,” she agreed looking at him with the same fondness, “at least at first. That is why we are here, to try and find what we missed. Why after thousands of years the old ways no longer served.”  

“But you are here because you already know,” Marr told me.

“’The heart of a Sith’” I murmured remembering another long-ago conversation. One that had haunted me for years.

“Yes,” Satele replied, “And the soul of a Jedi. You found the way forward. A way I had feared until now.”

It almost sounded like I was being given permission to toss the Code out the airlock.

“You couldn’t have come to the base and discussed this with me?”

“No,” Marr said with a disturbing amount of finality, “because more than _talk_ is required. Those weapons,” he nodded to my lightsabers, “were forged for a different war, a different enemy. They will no longer serve what you will become.”

“You want me to forge new lightsabers?”

“They will be more than that,” Satele said, “but first you must gather the components. Most are here in the camp, but there are two caves. One with crystals appropriate for your new weapons. The second… Well, you will see. We will meet you there.”

* * *

 

I still wasn’t exactly happy about being out here, and I could feel Theron’s worry in the back of my mind goading me on. I needed to get back, but at the same time I knew rushing this process was dangerous, so I gathered the tools and components then found the first cave.

It was more of a recess into the rock, but the formation of crystals was breathtaking. I almost felt guilty about disturbing the site. But I let the Force guide me to what I needed and carved out two small crystals that hummed with the energy of Odessen itself. They went into a pack with the rest of the gear, then I went searching for the second cave.

This one was larger, and felt strange. Like the eye of a storm.

And Vaylin was there.

“Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick- _tock_ …” she murmured in a sing song voice from the upper rim of the cave. It was impossible for her to be here. Arcann would have been raining fire on Odessen already if she was, but I had no other explanation. And I needed one fast.

“Tell me,” she asked, “do you believe in the future?”

I found that an odd question, because I wasn’t sure if she was talking about destiny or that fact I believed there was one period, or maybe did I believe _I_ had one.

“Does it matter?” I replied as we both ignited our lightsabers.

“I suppose not, but it would have been interesting to hear your answer before you died.”

* * *

 

The battle was brief, and vicious. I had the edge in technique but she was so strong it almost wasn’t enough.

 _I need to practice more,_ I thought as I parried a strike. Then I sensed the opening I needed and one of my sabers slide through her defenses… into empty air. I looked around desperate to find where Vaylin had went, but there was no sign.

“Valkorion’s influence has deepened your connection to the Force. You may be the greatest of us all,” Satele said from behind me. I turned and saw her and Marr standing there, calm and collected. “and such a bond brings great insight.”

“Heed this vision,” Marr told me, “Behind Arcann stands Vaylin, and behind her many others. They will all attempt to stop you from doing what you must.”

“And that is?”

“To save this galaxy for those who shattered it,” Satele told me.

“And how do I do that?”

“You must take the Eternal Throne,” Marr said, “Anything else will end in chaos.”

I took a deep breath and said, “So you’re agreeing with Valkorion?”

“Lord Scourge once told you that you would kill the Emperor and take up his power,” Satele replied, “that time is now. These new weapons, these pure extensions of the Force, are the first step.” She looked at Marr who nodded. “If you’re willing, we offer to join our power to yours.”

“But I guide the form it takes?”

“Yes, and with them you will unite a thousand stars,” Marr told me in a voice that made me shiver.

“Okay, let’s do this,” I said, wanting all this over. Wanting to go home.

Satele led me from the shelf to the floor of the cavern. Carved from the stone was a smaller version of the Forge back on Tython. The familiarity was comforting despite the situation.

Laying the components down, I knelt before the forge and allowed the Force to flow through me. My own will was joined by both Marr and Satele and I wondered for a moment if my bonds to them made this possible.

The components rose and began to fit themselves together around the core of the crystals I had chosen. The focus it took to forge both lightsabers, one after the other, was intense, but I never faltered, and neither did Satele and Marr. And as the last piece clicked into place, I willed the sabers to my hands and ignited them.

When I picked the crystals, I hadn’t been sure what color they would be, but now the blades burned a violet with strands of blue. It reminded me of an opal I’d once seen. I shut them down again and looked at my ‘teachers’.

“You two okay?”

“We’ll be fine, Aryelle, but thank you for asking,” Satele said quietly, but I could hear the exhaustion in her voice.

“Those blades are now an extension of your will,” Marr added, “Arcann will not be ready for them when you face him in battle.”

“But violence can only destroy. It cannot inspire or rebuild. Only a leader can do that,” Satele told me. “You have that within you, Aryelle. You _always_ have. Your affinity with Force bonds is only a small part of it. Simply be who you are, and others will follow. Believe in your cause and others will believe with you.”

“There is one last lesson,” Marr told me. “It awaits you by the waterfall.”

* * *

 

As I watched the mother Jurgoren turn and climb up the side of the cliff, I felt a mixture of guilt and resentment. There was no reason to send me here, no reason to force me to defend myself against her children. Satele and Marr had to have known, but they sent me anyway. And they’d known the mother was nearby too.

I’d stared the Jurgoren down, willing her to feel my regret and sadness, and she had chosen to leave rather than shed more blood.

I heard Satele’s footsteps and turned on them both. “What the hell kind of lesson was that?”

“The lesson,” Marr said, “is that sometimes, no matter how much blood stands between you and your foe, you must find a way to make peace.”

“And that sometimes, death is unavoidable no matter how hard you try,” Satele added. “Your Alliance is something new in the history of this galaxy, but it will collapse if you do not know yourself, Aryelle.”

I’d had enough of the lectures, and I was more certain than ever in what I believed.

“I know who I am, what I am,” I said to them both,” and I’ll do what I believe is right, but they’ll be my choices, and my responsibilities. Not destiny.”

“Then you have already begun,” Satele said after a moment. “Do you feel it, Marr? We are being called… elsewhere.”

“The exile on Odessen is finally over.”

Satele looked at me once more and pointed toward a path I swore wasn’t there a second ago. “That path will return you to your base, and know that you are ready for whatever comes.”

Marr disappeared as she turned and headed back to her ship. I decided not to stick around. I didn’t want to deal with either of them anymore. There was too much anger and resentment. I needed some peace to process everything, and I wasn’t sure if I would be able to completely forgive. And not just about the Jurgoren.

But anger, resentment, and regret would have to wait. I had people counting on me, and an Alliance to command. It was time to get back to it.


	5. Homecomings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aryelle returns to base, and so do Major Jorgan and Kaylio after the mission to the relay goes bad.

_Theron Shan_

The tightness in my chest eased as I felt that ‘not quite’ sensation heading for the war room lift. I’d been trying not to pace, but I just couldn’t sit still. Not knowing where Aryelle was, what Valkorion might have done to her, drove me crazy. And I couldn’t do a damned thing.

I _really_ don’t do helpless.

“Look, Senya, Kaylio is ahead of schedule and she’s kept the body count down so we’re in good shape,” I told her, but before she could fire back we heard:

“I chose Kaylio for a reason, so would you please let her work?”

Aryelle walked over to stand by my side, which killed the last of my anxiety. She checked the mission’s status on my terminal before Lana finally exploded.

“Where the blazes have you _been_?” she asked in that clipped Dromund Kaas accent of hers.

“I took your advice, Lana, and had a chat with Valkorion, or tried to,” Aryelle said as she turned to look at Lana, “Unfortunately for me, he wasn’t forthcoming about the Spire. He did, however, give me a taste of what will happen to me if Arcann wins. That and a lecture about how I wasn’t living up to my potential.”

“Potential?” Lana asked her.

“Yeah, long story, but not as important as the fact he’s no longer in my head,” Aryelle replied, “and I don’t know where he’s gone or what his plans are. But before he left, he dumped me in a clearing to be found by Satele, who has been here for years apparently, and Marr’s ghost.” She looked at me, “I’m sorry, Theron, but she left Odessen after the two of them were done ‘teaching’ me.”

Aryelle’s voice was as calm as ever, or sounded that way to anyone who didn’t know her well. But I heard the anger loud and clear. What had Satele done to her? And Marr? She was here with Marr of all people?

“Anyway, between the beating, the lecture, and the lessons, I’ve got a better idea of what it’s going to take to beat Arcann, but it’s complicated.” She finished, and I could see he exhaustion in her eyes. So, I shoved all my own questions aside.

“Kaylio, status?” I said, looking up at the Spire map hanging over the main holo projector. She’d stopped moving, and that set off alarms in my head.

“Skytroopers,” she hissed to me, “about a dozen of them. I almost ran right into them.”

“Don’t panic,” I told her, “it’s possible they didn’t see you.”

“If they did…” Kaylio’s voice was drowned out by blaster fire and then the com channel went silent.

“Major Jorgan,” Aryelle snapped as a holo of Havoc’s CO came up on a secondary system, “the mission’s yours. Take the relay out and find Kaylio and extract her. Understood?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Jorgan said, “Havoc won’t let you down.”

“I know you won’t,” she replied before the holo went blank. Then she looked at me and I nodded.

“Okay, we’re going to condition Alpha,” I said, looking around the room, “I want a net so fine a stray micro asteroid couldn’t get into the system without us knowing it.”

That’s all it took to get my people moving. They were professionals, and had been even before they’d come to work for the Alliance. Since then I’d drilled them mercilessly to get them to work as a team, and I’m pretty sure there were death plots at one point. But that training was paying off now.

Aryelle was still studying my terminal when I looked over at her, and I could see the exhaustion in her body language. Most people wouldn’t be able to tell the difference, but she couldn’t fool me.

“You need some rest,” I told her quietly.

She gave me a small smile. “No time,” she replied.

I shook my head. “Hard to be the competent Commander if you’re falling over from exhaustion.”

I knew it was pretty ironic that I was the one telling her this, but that didn’t change the fact I was right. We needed her fresh and confident.

“I’m needed here, Theron,” she said, “I can go without for a little while longer.”

“And if something happens after that ‘little while longer’?”

She glared at me then sighed, “fine, but I can’t go back to my quarters, it’s just too far in case I need get here quickly if something does happen.”

“I know just the place,” I said and guided her to the alcove that Lana had taken me to several hours before.

Aryelle settled in on the couch, curling up as best she could. She shivered a little, most likely from the exhaustion, but it could have been the temperature down here as well. So, I shrugged out of my jacket, and tucked it around her. She looked up at me and gave me a tired smile. “Thanks.”

“Of course,” I replied as that protective feeling welled up in me, along with a little possessiveness. Don’t know why, but there it was.

I found HK just outside, and I wondered what he was doing there.

“Explanation,” he said, “Mistress Beniko requested that I watch over Master Aryelle and insure she is not disturbed except in an emergency.”

“Good idea,” I replied with the intention of thanking Lana when I got back to the war room, “but no deadly force, understood?”

“Query: Should I simply maim them then?”

I need to remember how blood thirsty HK still is, even though he’s supposed to be a bodyguard model.

“No maiming, no bloodshed of any kind. Just find a nonviolent way to keep people out.”

“Disappointed acceptance: of course, Master Shan.”

I tried not to twitch a little as I left. Master Shan is and always will be my mother, but no matter how many times I try to explain that to HK, he continued to use the honorific. I figure it’s what passes for the droid’s sense of humor. But I wasn’t going to linger on it. I still had work to do.

* * *

 

_Aryelle Thrace_

 “Grab some glasses and get to know what success tastes like,” Gault said as he looked around at the six of us, then pulled out a bottle. If the stuff was expensive as he was claiming, I wasn’t sure I wanted any. Despite the running joke I had with Theron about buying me a drink, I wasn’t really much for alcoholic beverages. It’s the taste.

But the heist had gone well, even with the way we were going through the alphabet for plans. I know Lana said this was a necessary evil and not something to be celebrated. But there’s something to be said for raising a glass to getting out alive.

But before we could open the bottle, Theron walked in and the look on his face told me it was bad news. Really bad news.

“Major Jorgan and Kaylio are back, Commander,” he said, “They’re in the docking bay.”

 “So much for celebrating,” Lana said and looked at me, “go ahead, we’ll be right behind.”

* * *

 

I walked into the bay and the first thing I notice were the coffins draped with Republic flags. Four of them, which made me feel a little sick inside. It was a feeling I was going to have to get used to, because this wasn’t going to be the last time I ordered anyone to their deaths.

“Major, Kaylio, welcome back,” I said quietly, cutting through the argument they were having. I didn’t like what I was hearing about how the mission went, but there’d be time to consider things in a formal debriefing. “It’s good to see you both safe.”

“Others weren’t so lucky, ma’am” Jorgan replied, touching one of the coffins. I heard the anger, and guilt in his voice.

“I’ll arrange formal services for them before we send them home, and I’ll want to write their families myself, if you think it’s appropriate, Major.”

“Thank you, Commander, I appreciate it.”

“It’s the least I can do,” I replied, managing to keep my voice professional. This was one of those moments where the Jedi Code was a tiny bit comforting.

“It wasn’t a complete loss,” Kaylio said with a disturbing lack of empathy, “I grabbed something on the way out.”

“My fire team covered you,” Jorgan shot back.

“We managed to lift a data core from a computer right outside the relay station,” Kaylio continued as Jorgan’s comment rolled right off her. “It’s not the Gemini frequency’s protocols or anything, but it’s a huge archive file on the droid captains.”

“I’ll get Scorpio to work on sifting through the data,” Lana said as she and Theron walked in.

“Thank you, Lana,” I replied.

“Commander,” Theron said formally, “this could have been much worse, but we can’t let this happen again. I recommend these operatives be confined to base for the time being.”

“What?” Kaylio said, and I could hear the indignance in her voice.

“No,” Jorgan replied, “he’s right. We didn’t function as a team and we paid for it.”

I thought about Jorgan’s words for a moment, and then nodded, “Which means we’re going to have to repair that fault.” I looked at Theron and said, “Get together with Admiral Aygo, Theron, and start coming up with a training regimen based on a single operative working in tandem with a squad. Every scenario you can come up with, every kind of terrain. Make them as hard as you can, and if possible harder than anything they’d actually find in the field.”

“I didn’t sign up for this!” Kaylio protested.

“Yes, you did,” I replied, “and I suggest you look at it this way: this kind of training will up your survivability the next time we _do_ send you out.”

Kaylio glared at me then stormed out, even as Theron informed the guards she wasn’t to leave base.

I looked at Jorgan and he nodded, “For the record, Commander, I concurred with your decision. I promised you Havoc wouldn’t let you down, and we did. Time to make amends.”

“Thank you, Major, and I appreciate your candor. You’re dismissed.”

He saluted me smartly, and left, taking one last look at the coffins as he did so.

He wasn’t the only one.

“We’re going to need an honor guard,” I said, thinking aloud, “and we’ll hold the service this evening after dinner. I’m not making this mandatory, but we’ll try to encourage anyone who’s off-duty to attend. I’ll also need to make a few remarks.”

 “We can handle the details, Commander,” Lana told me, but I shook my head.

“I promised Major Jorgan I’d handle it, and I will.”

“You said you’d arrange for the service, not every little detail,” Theron put in, “and I doubt he’s expecting you to.”

“All right,” I sighed, “Just keep me informed,”

“Of course, Commander,” Lana said.

I nodded my thanks as I headed back to my quarters to get some rest before I faced one of the worst parts of my new job.


	6. Always

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With some alone time, Theron tries find the words to express how he really feels for Aryelle.

_Aryelle Thrace_

The day after Kaylio and Jorgen got back, I’d finally managed to spend some time alone with Theron. I needed it pretty badly. I needed to cuddle and pretend I had a normal life for a few hours, and I think he did too.

Theron’s emotional state is never simple, but it _is_ readable. For me at least. But the today, his emotions were such complex patterns, it was hard for me to sense what was going on. All I knew was that he’d been a little jumpy after dinner when he asked me if we could talk.

The door to my quarters slid closed, and I turned to look at him. “You said you wanted to talk?”

He nodded and I watched him start to pace. “Theron?”

He stopped to look at me and said:

“You know I’m not good at this… the whole relationship thing.”

“You’ve been doing fine so far,” I replied cautiously.

“What I mean is… I’ve been trying to find…” He stopped and took a deep breath. “When Valkorion cut us off, when I couldn’t sense you anymore, I nearly lost it. It was like you never existed, and I couldn’t take it.” He stopped and began to pace again. “Even when the bond came back online, I didn’t know where you were or how to find you…”

I swallowed. His emotions were shifting so fast in those same complex patterns that I could barely make sense of them. The only thing I sensed with any clarity was fear.

“Theron,” I said, immediately jumping to the worst possible conclusion I could think of for this ‘talk’. “Please don’t tell me you want to walk away.”

He stopped and looked at me horrified. “No!” he said, “it’s the opposite. I’m just trying to trying to find the words to explain… You’re the Commander of the Alliance, and I thought I understood what that meant. And I do, intellectually at least. But emotionally? I never thought I could lose you again. But I know now there are going to be times in this job where I’m not going to be able to be there with you.” His face softened, and then I could feel it. What he was trying to tell me but couldn’t.

“I just want you to know, whatever happens, I’ll be waiting for you. Always.”

 I wanted to tell him how I felt. That I loved him, and I knew he loved me. But I didn’t, because Theron wasn’t ready to say it yet. So instead, I went and hugged him tightly, and said:

“Whatever happens, I promise I’ll come back to you.”

I love you, Theron Shan… Always.


End file.
